Place (and Such Things)

Authors

  • Massimo Fortis Politecnico di Milano

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.26754/ojs_zarch/zarch.201319369

Abstract

In “Place, Production and Scenography: international theory and practice since 1962,” the conclu ding chapter of Kenneth Frampton’s Modern Architecture: A Critical History, published in London in 1980, the author gives an account of recent architectural developments and trends in progress at the time of the writing. Having underlined the ineffectiveness of operative planning in the development of the physical form of settlements, toward which he seemed to show a certain indifference, he examined the potential promise of urban design, noting: «There is, as Hans Sedlmayr has pointed out, a moment when place and production are fused together to yield that quality of character from which we receive our identity.» This fundamental issue raised in the brief introduction points to the division between architectural culture and architectural practice, between a line of action oriented toward interpreting the dominant methods of production and a second, more defensive one, which aims to re-establish the sense of relations, while running the risk of slipping into the introversion of the enclave. The con- sequence is a loss of the very sense of “urbanness” and, ultimately, quality of life. Nor does it seem possible for an incentive to come from the population itself, which seeks a remedy for its discomfort mostly by turning to the reassuring visage of tradition, if not to its post-modern parody, failing to go «beyond the surface issue of style to demand that architectural practice should re-address itself to the issue of place creation, to a critical yet creative redefinition of the concrete qualities of the built domain.»

Downloads

Download data is not yet available.

Author Biography

Massimo Fortis, Politecnico di Milano

Massimo Fortis. Born in Novara in 1944 and graduated in Architecture from the Polytechnic of Milan in 1969. The main experience in his development as architect and teacher is represented by the experience with of Aldo Rossi, Giorgio Grassi and Antonio Monestiroli with whom he collaborated in the early seventies. He teaches Architectural Composition since 1974, with emphasis on the matrix of architectural types and combining the urban design tradition with the dialogue of topics peculiar to construction. He is currently Full Professor in the Department of Architecture and Urban Studies at the Polytechnic of Milan and teaches in the School of Architecture, as well as sitting on the board of AUC doctoral course. From 2003 to 2009 he was Head of the Department of Architectural Design. His own design work has been in Civic Architecture, mainly involving the design of housing, educational and sports buildings for public institutions, most of them built in Northern Italy. In the specific area of the restoration of the modern, he oversaw the maintenance project in Building “D” in the Monte Amiata complex, designed by Aldo Rossi, and the project of restoration and functional rehabilitation of the Institute Marchiondi, by Vittoriano Viganò.

Published

2013-12-31

How to Cite

Fortis, M. (2013). Place (and Such Things). ZARCH. Journal of Interdisciplinary Studies in Architecture and Urbanism, (1), 192–223. https://doi.org/10.26754/ojs_zarch/zarch.201319369

Issue

Section

Featured texts